HOW DO YOU KEEP SCORE?

Why do you play golf? How much satisfaction and enjoyment do you get from playing the game? No matter what level you play at, there is no doubt, golf can be a frustrating game. I have even known a handful of players who have quit playing all together because they could not enjoy the game any longer, or should I say, they could not enjoy the way they played it. If you are frustrated with your game and find your enjoyment and satisfaction meter dipping into the red every time you play, I have a guaranteed solution to the problem. Although I make a living teaching students how to play the game, the real secret to enjoying the game of golf is not to change your grip, adjust your stance or master the two plane swing. The answer is to change the way you keep score. I learned this method of scorekeeping from my brother-in-law a couple years ago and was amazed by the transformation it had on his game.

I think my brother-in-law would be the first to admit his golf swing is not a threat to Tiger Woods’ domination of the sport. He plays very infrequently and although he can play with a moderate degree of proficiency, he is also capable of miss hitting the ball at any time and in every conceivable fashion. In the past, by mid-round he would usually have hit enough bad shots that he would be visibly in a bad mood. Although he never swore or threw clubs, I’m sure with a little less self restraint he could have really excelled at those components of the game. It was not uncommon for his frustration to reach a point in the round where he might quit playing for a couple holes until he regained some composure.

This particular round was no different than the others we had played before. However, this time his whole demeanor was different as we played. He finished all nine holes and did not get upset at any time during the round. He dutifully kept score after each hole, inquiring after each hole the number of strokes he should put down for my sister and I. When we sat down for lunch after the round he tossed the scorecard on the table and announced my sister had scored a 47 and I had scored an even par round of 36. Since he did not announce his score I picked up the scorecard and discovered the boxes for his scores were not filled with numbers but…… letters?

“What does this “GP” stand for on the first hole”, I asked.

“That’s a Good Putt” he said, matter-of-factly.

“Oh” I said. “Yes. You did knock in a nice 20 footer on that hole. What about this ND / GC on the 2^nd hole”. Knowing full well he must have taken at least 10 strokes to complete the hole.

“Ah, that’s a Nice Drive and a Good Chip.”

He was right. He had hit a very nice drive and executed a nice little pitch shot, to about two feet, once he made it up to the green.

His “score” for the 4^th hole was EVMS (Enjoyed View of Mount Si). This, however, had not been my perspective on the hole, since we had waited for at least 10 minutes on the tee for the group in front of us. Because it was a busy summer day the rest of the round was equally slow, but the notation on the 5^th hole was that he had hit a great approach shot (GA). Number 7 he saw a deer cross the fairway (SD). The notation for the 9^th hole was TFL (Time For Lunch). His “score” on each hole was what he found memorable or pleasing while playing that hole.

All in all, I had never seen him have a more enjoyable day on the golf course. He had discovered what the true meaning of the game of golf was for him and had found a way to reflect that on the scorecard. It was the best round he had ever played.

So I ask each of you, the next time you find yourself frustrated by your game, or upset by the pace of play, to adopt this method, or create your own score keeping variation, and see if you can find the true enjoyment of the game within yourself.

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